Crucible
by HPLamecraft
Summary: Every officer faces trial. Some break. Some emerge strengthened. They have one thing in common: they are all changed. Judy's trial is harsher than most and has the young cop struggling to get back on her feet.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Zootopia and all characters within Zootopia are property of Walt Disney and are used without permission for nonprofit fan based parody. Manny Gujerat is borrowed heavily from S. Andrew Swann's 'Moreau' series, which is highly enjoyable and I suggest giving a read.

 **Crucible**

Rain pattered against chief Bogo's window. He stood looking out over the city, hands behind his back, watching the last of the storm run itself out. Blue sky peeked over the edge of the horizon past Sahara Square. He should be happy. His department had performed exceptionally well in keeping citizens safe during what had proved to be a thousand year weather event. The property damage was immense, but there had been no reports of fatalities. At least not caused by the storm directly.

He ran a hand across his muzzle, the growth of stubble rasping against his palm. No, not directly. Related too, certainly. He was not looking forward to this. The chief turned towards his door at the tentative knock.

"Enter."

The young police woman who slipped through the door was, for all intents and purposes, the model of rules and regulations. Only the bandages marred her uniform appearance. Bogo knew that the ones on her arms and ears were not alone. There were more under her clothing. For a second he felt his blood boil at the thought of the attack on one of his own. It must have showed on his face for the rabbit he'd called in suddenly dropped her eyes to the floor, ears hanging behind her back. He took a breath and forced away his anger.

"Officer Hopps."

"Sir." Judy Hopps clicked her heels together and saluted the water buffalo, a paragon of attention again. "Reporting as ordered sir."

"At ease officer."

"Sir." The rabbit did not relax in the slightest.

Chief Bogo settled his bulk into the chair behind his desk with a soft sigh. He wiggled a little bit to loosen up his tail, shifting his haunches until everything was perfect. The only time Judy had seen him do that was when he was getting ready to deliver a class one reaming. She gulped and stared straight ahead.

"Per standard operating procedure officer, there will be a homicide investigation into the outcome of this case. You will be placed on paid administrative leave until such time as the investigation returns a finding. The district attorney's office will then review the investigation and decide whether or not to present the case to a grand jury."

"Sir."

"Furthermore officer you will surrender your weapon to me for forensic analysis."

"Sir." The rabbit unbuckled her holster and laid the duty sidearm on the chief's desk.

The water buffalo rubbed his eyes and sighed. He shifted his weight again and leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers together.

"Sit officer."

"I would prefer to stand sir."

"Sit. That's a direct order."

Judy neatly pivoted, pulled out the chair on the other side of the chief's desk and sat in it. Bogo sighed again at her posture. Fully at attention, even while seated.

"You are not being dressed down officer."

"Sir?"

"What happened yesterday was clearly reported by you, the backup squad, and every other officer who responded to that call. This is not a reprimand. This is not me sitting here chewing you out for any perceived wrongdoing. I want you to understand that."

"Sir." The rabbit kept her gaze level, fixed at some point over the chief's shoulder.

Bogo watched her carefully. Situations like this were always tricky, especially with young cops. What happened here could make or break her as law enforcement. He grunted, leaned forward, and laid a hand on her trembling arm.

"Judy."

"Sir."

"Look at me Judy."

Judy shifted her gaze to her commander's face. She felt her foot trying desperately to start pounding on the floor. It took every ounce of will she had to keep it from thumping a rhythm as fast as her heartbeat against the hardwood. She'd never had Bogo call her by her first name before. It was always 'Officer' or 'Hopps' or, on rare occasions when he was in a righteous fury, 'You damned overzealous bunny'. That last one may have been a violation of a hostile work environment law, but she'd also heard him call an elephant a 'Peanut sniffing son of a sea cow and a coconut that couldn't find its own trunk with a flashlight, map, and Special Forces team'. That was a pretty memorable screw up, one she had thankfully not been part of.

"Judy, this is entirely off the record here. You are not in trouble. If it were up to me I'd be putting an official commendation in your file for being cool headed under extreme stress and acting to save the life of a fellow officer. Unfortunately there are ways this has to be addressed and that isn't one of them. Do you understand me? Homicide is going to determine that you were in the right. I'm not going to let you hang out to dry on this."

"Sir…thank you sir." Judy bit her lip to keep it from trembling. One hand reached up to swipe at her eyes. "And sir…is…?"

"Officer Wilde is out of critical condition and the prognosis looks good. Apparently that fox's head is harder than anything I've ever seen."

"Thank you sir."

"Dismissed Hopps."

Judy rose from her seat, shoulders shaking with suppressed sobs. She swiped her hand over her eyes again and marched towards the door.

"Oh and Judy?"

"Sir?" She froze, hand on the doorknob.

"The first thing I suggest you do is pay a visit to Wilde. I'm sure he'd appreciate it. And I'm sure you need it."

"Yes sir. Thank you sir."

* * *

"Hello Judy."

"Hello Doctor Gujerat."

The mongoose opposite her smiled and let out a wry chuckle.

"I'm only Doctor Gujerat to my students. Please, call me Manny."

"Yes doctor."

"Manny.

"Yes Manny."

The mongoose smiled again and gestured towards the plush armchair opposite his desk.

"Please, have a seat."

Judy folded herself in the chair, knees up around her chin, ears drooping down her back. She stared at the floor, intent on discovering the mysteries of the universe in the deep pile carpet. They had to be in there somewhere. She heard the mongoose sit down in his own chair, the creak of the springs as he leaned back indicating the session was ready to begin.

"So Judy. Please, tell me why you're here."

"I'm here because of an incident on the 28th of May, which was eight days ago today. My partner, Officer Wilde, and myself were acting on a concerned citizen call. Officer Wilde was injured, I was superficially wounded and I discharged my weapon in defense of myself and my partner. After I was cleared by homicide of wrongdoing I was allowed to return to the force in a non patrol capacity until such time as Chief Bogo feels like I am ready for active duty."

"Textbook." The mongoose's chair squeaked again. "Yes, I suppose from that standpoint this is all just rules and regulations isn't it? Does that make it easier to deal with?"

"Excuse me?" Judy lifted her eyes to the psychologist. "Easier to deal with? Those are the facts. There is no easier or harder to deal with. Officer Wilde and I responded to a call. I was forced to use my weapon. Officer Wilde was injured but is making a full recovery. That's all there is to it. End of story. Case closed."

"I see." Manny shifted his spectacles and glanced down at the chart in his hand. "Tell me officer, do you recall how many times you discharged your weapon?"

"Four or five."

"Four or five shots? Are you certain of that Judy?"

The rabbit felt a flush rising to her face.

"Are you saying I'm lying?"

"No, not at all." Manny lifted a hand in a conciliatory gesture. "I'm simply asking if you are certain of that."

"I…yes it must have been. The first shot missed, and then two rounds to center of mass, and then aiming for the head when the perp kept coming forward. That's all. I fired my weapon four or five times."

"Judy…" Manny leaned forward and presented her the chart in his lap. "The official report puts your empties at 19. You completely emptied your weapon. Don't you remember?"

"Why would I-" Judy flinched back from the chart like a poisonous snake. "No. No I didn't fire that many times. That's panic fire."

"It's right here Judy."

"No. It's wrong. I fired four or five times."

Manny withdrew the untouched case file and leaned back. He studied the young police woman in front of him. Her nerves were plain to see, raw and inflamed. Fear and paranoia etched on every line of her face, from the tension she held herself in, to the way her foot kept twitching against the chair.

"Judy I want you to go through, step by step, exactly what happened that day. As much as you can remember. Not the official story, but what you experienced."

"And if I don't want to?"

"I can't force you to."

Judy lifted her eyes from the floor and studied the doctor sitting across from her. He was lean in his slacks and button down shirt, a clashing tie with a riot of colors against the simple white cotton. Smile lines were etched around eyes that hinted at good humor, infinite patience, and deep sadness. Delicate hands were clasped under a pointed muzzle starting to go grey.

"You haven't gone through the psych eval yet doctor." She pointed to the questionnaire she'd filled out before coming into the office.

"No, I haven't." The mongoose picked it up from the end table and glanced at it. A wry smile touched his lips after scanning just a few lines. "I'm sorry Judy. It appears you may have filled this out incorrectly. No fault, no blame, but just some inaccuracies I'd like to go over."

"Such as?" Judy felt herself starting to flush again. "Did I misspell my name or put the wrong year or something?"

"Such as if you accurately recall exactly what happened. We've already established that you don't."

"Yes I do." Her foot was going a full 100 BPM against the chair now. "I remember everything perfectly."

"Including the number of rounds you fired? Your own admission doesn't match up with the official finding."

"Why would I lie?" 120 BPM. Her ears were starting to lift off her back as her anger began to boil. "I did not empty my weapon, I have no reason to lie, why are you calling me a liar?"

"Easy now." Manny gestured back towards the chair. "Please, take your seat."

The anger was tinted with a touch of shame as Judy realized she had left the chair and was halfway to the doctor. She slid back onto the cushion, foot still pounding furiously.

"I'm not calling you a liar Judy." Manny set his chart on his desk and leaned forward, hands spread wide. "In an event like this many officers have difficulty remember exactly what happened. It's normal for any mammal in an extremely difficult and dangerous situation to suppress, or misremember exactly what happened."

"So if I admit I emptied my weapon you'll sign off on my eval?"

"…Not as much, no I'm afraid."

"Why not?"

"Because Judy, in an officer involved shooting almost no officer remembers how many rounds they fired. It's common. No, I need you to tell me exactly why you put 19 rounds into the suspect. I need you to tell me, in detail, exactly what happened that day."

"And why do you need to know that?"

"Because of why you were referred to me. It's not simply the case; it's your reactions afterwards that have concerned your superiors."

"You mean the archives?"

Manny nodded and spread his hands in a placating gesture.

"Exactly that. Judy, why did you freeze when you were asked to go down into the archives to store some files?"

"I…"

She was standing at the top of the stairs leading down into long term storage. The box of files which a few moments ago had been so light felt like it was dragging her to the floor. The light changed, flickered, dimmed. She felt herself falling down the stairs, down…down to a place with no light and the smell of death and something incredibly dangerous. It was down there. Waiting for her. Whatever it was it waiting for her. It was hard to breathe. The lights went out and Judy could hear it moving below.

"I don't…" Judy shook her head. "I just had a dizzy spell is all."

"Judy", the mongoose reached out and put a hand on the arm of her chair. "They found you a half hour later, curled around the box of files at the top of the step, weeping. When Benjamin Clawhauser touched your shoulder you took one look at him and started screaming. It took another half hour to calm you down."

"I was startled." Judy felt her nose starting to twitch. She gripped the arms of the chair tightly, trying to control her breathing.

"Of Benjamin? He has the subtlety of a parade and is slightly less threatening than a children's film. He's your friend. He called out to you before he approached."

"He's…it was the basement and he's…"

"He's what Judy?"

"He's a feline…" The words came out as a whisper. "He's so much bigger than me. And he has claws and teeth and they didn't give me a sidearm yet and-"

Judy felt her nose going full force. Her chest heaved as she thought of a shape towering over her, tail lashing back and forth. A clawed hand reaching for her. Scrabbling for a gun that wasn't there.

"Judy." Manny touched the tip of one her fingers. "Judy it's OK. You're safe."

The mongoose moved his hand on top of hers. The gentle pressure drew her back in to the room, her breathing slowing. Only the constant twitching of her nose belied her terror.

"Judy, I can't clear you for duty yet because you just told me you were terrified of your friend simply because of his species. I can't clear you for duty because you panicked at the thought of having to go into a basement. And I especially can't clear you for duty, or to be issued a sidearm, because Benjamin reported that the first place you grabbed for was where your holster should have been."

"Are you saying I would have shot Ben?" To her ears the words sounded sickening.

"I'm saying you might have reacted without realizing what you were doing." Manny leaned back again and turned to his computer, fingers flying over the keyboard. "You went through a lot. The official report doesn't cover it all. If you're willing, I'd like you to come back in a few days. In the meantime I'm suggesting, not ordering or mandating, only suggesting, that you be placed on medical leave. Please, don't try to rush yourself back into work. I've been working with emergency personnel for a very long time now and what you deal with can be comparable to the stresses of soldiers in combat. Take some time off, come back in a few days, and we'll see if we can work through this."

The printer hummed quietly and Manny offered the output to Judy.

"Top copy is a tentative schedule for sessions, second sheet is my response to the evaluation, third sheet is my recommendation, and the remaining copies are for whatever bureaucracy needs them."

Judy took the printouts, her nose finally slowing to a stop. She glanced at them and looked up at the mongoose.

"And if I don't want to come back?"

"Then I can't clear you for duty. Neither can any other mental health professional. You don't have to keep doing this. You can retire from law enforcement. Nobody would blame you or be upset. You had an extremely traumatic experience that, I feel, stems partially from the fact that you're a woman and partially from the fact that you're the physically weakest member of the force. You can walk out of my office and never see me again."

The mongoose leaned forward, concern and compassion etched on his face.

"But you'll also be carrying that fear around with you. Ask yourself if you want to keep carrying that."

Judy looked down at the top sheet in her hands for a long moment. She swallowed and returned her eyes to the doctor.

"I'll see you in a few days then."


	2. Chapter 2

Judy glanced down at the handful of pamphlets the receptionist had given her. Ranging from "Signs and symptoms of PTSD" to "CBT, PE, and EMDR: Understanding treatments" they certainly looked to make riveting reading, right on par with the federal tax code. She glanced at the clock, another twenty minutes until her session with Dr. Gujerat. With a sigh she flipped open the first pamphlet and began to read.

The tax code was more exciting.

Pamphlets finished (was it really only 10 minutes?) Judy settled back in the chair and drew her knees up to her chest. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Count to five, let it out. Fru Fru had been coaching her on deep breathing to manage stress. She drew another one, let it go. It seemed to be working. An eye cracked open to look at the clock. Seven minutes.

A twitch at the edge of her vision snapped her out of her meditation. The rabbit's blood ran cold as she turned her head. A tail flicked back and forth by the receptionist's counter. A very feline tail. She bit her lip to stifle a scream. The receptionist was saying something. The tiger at the counter responded. He chuckled. A deep chuckle. Judy's arms went around her legs as she screwed her eyes shut. Oh God. Oh God. The chuckle came again and she felt a whimper pass her lips. She opened her eyes and saw the tiger and the badger receptionist looking at her. Its eyes were staring right at her. She tried to scream but all that came out was a strangled squeak.

The tiger shifted uncomfortably. Judy couldn't pull her eyes away from it. It picked up a piece of paper, nodded to the receptionist and slowly walked to the door. It wasn't until the door that the young officer was able to shut her eyes again. Tears of fear and shame left hot tracks down her muzzle. Stupid. She shouldn't have come back. She could get up and leave. She could-her eyes jerked open and this time she managed to scream as something touched her wrist.

* * *

"I'm sorry for frightening you Judy."

"It's OK doctor." She clutched a pillow tightly to her chest in Manny's officer, peering over it at the mongoose. "I just-"

"You just weren't expecting a big cat."

"I…"

"It's all right. Have you always been afraid of them?"

Judy shook her head. She didn't know why Clawhauser, and now this random tiger would upset her so much. Manny flipped through the chart in his lap, spectacles perched on the end of his nose.

"I understand on your first case you ran into a jaguar that went savage. You hadn't even been issued your sidearm yet. A Mr. Manchas correct?"

She nodded. That was so long ago. Or was it? Only a little over two years now. She'd been afraid then, but not like this.

"What changed?" Manny leaned forward slightly. "What was different about this case that's made you so paranoid around them?"

"I don't know." Judy drew her legs up tighter. "Manchas was…he wasn't himself. He'd been talking to Nick and me just a moment before. I found out later he'd been poisoned with night howler but at the time we didn't know that. But he was just…dangerous. Not himself. Not thinking."

"And that made him less frightening?"

"I guess. Maybe." Judy remembered the adrenaline rush of panicked flight. "There wasn't really time to think. Nick and I just ran."

"So you didn't have time to think and you had room to run." The mongoose settled back into his chair and adjusted his glasses. "What was different about this case?"

"It was-", Judy closed her eyes. "Dark. Nowhere to go. It-he was…"

Eyes shining in the darkness. Empty, hollow eyes. Blood on the floor. Judy buried her face in the pillow. She had nowhere to run. Every time she tried the monster was right there. No matter how hard she tried it was ready for her. It was stroke of luck she got to her gun. The smell of death and blood and torn bowels. The rumble of thunder and a deep chuckle.

"Where was Officer Wilde when all of this happened?"

Judy sniffled behind the pillow and shook her head.

"He wasn't with you?"

She shook her head again.

"Where was he?"

"Floor." The answer came out flat.

"He was on the floor."

"Yes."

"Why was he on the floor?"

"Injured."

"How did he get injured?"

Words in her ear. A rough tongue. Nick was dead? She saw in a frozen tableau that he was still breathing. She wanted so badly to go to him. There wasn't time. She had to get out. Had to run. Nowhere to run. It was right behind her.

"Run for me bunny." Judy felt the words tear at her throat as she said them. "He said run for me."

"Who said?"

Hulking and lithe and moving so fast and she couldn't get away she had to get out she had to run she had to escape the door was closed the door was locked and she was falling, falling, flying, hurtling through the empty air towards a killer's smile and teeth and…

After a while she became aware of her own screams. She blinked, saw a large hand extended towards her under the chair. She snapped at it, teeth clicking on empty air as it jerked back. The pillow went up as a wall between her and the world. She rocked back and forth, throat sore, chest heaving as the tears came.

"Judy?" The voice was calm and gentle. "Judy are you going to be all right?"

"G'way." Her voice was weak.

"I'm afraid I can't. What I can do is sit right here and make sure nothing happens to you."

"Please just go away."

"Judy I just want to help-"

"Please-" Her voice cracked. "Please go away."

Soft footsteps across the carpet. The door opened and closed gently with a click. She clutched the pillow like a lifeline to sanity and cried.

* * *

"I'm glad to see you again Judy."

The rabbit said nothing. She had assumed what had become her normal position in the armchair over the past weeks, knees drawn up to her chest, a pillow in her arms, chin resting on top of it. She peered at the mongoose doctor over the top with tired eyes. He settled himself down, leaned back, and consulted the chart. The damnable chart. Always with the chart, as if it could do anything to restore normality to her life. She was beginning to hate it.

"I understand officer Wilde is back on his feet?" Manny didn't look up. "That must be good?"

"Yeah." Judy squeezed the pillow a little tighter. "Yeah, it's good."

"I also understand you were taking care of him while he was in a wheelchair?"

"Yeah."

"And you know he's been coming to see me as well?"

"Yeah."

The mongoose sighed softly and set the chart aside.

"Judy, Nick's been telling me about the nightmares."

"Didn't know he was having any."

"He is, although that's obviously not why I brought it up. He mentioned that you were. Why don't you tell me about them?"

"Not having nightmares." Judy's voice was muffled by the pillow as her head sunk down. "'M fine. Everything's fine."

"Judy, please. I want to help you. I want you to get through this. I've seen what letting an experience like this fester can do to a mammal." Manny leaned forward slightly. "I can only do that if you're honest. Honest with me and honest with yourself."

"I'm not…", Judy swallowed the words, sinking lower until just the tips of her ears were sticking over the pillow. "They're just stupid dreams. They can't hurt me."

"No, but trying to stay awake for days on end to avoid them can. Nick also told me about that."

"I just don't want to sleep. That's all. He took a lot of looking after." Judy's head rose above the pillow. "Besides, what does he care? He's fine. He's not the one waking up screaming in the dark. He's not the one who starts to panic every time a feline walks by on the street, or sits near him in the subway, or keeps looking at him because he's frozen in fear and his nose is twitching and can't come out and say 'Hi, I know you're not going to hurt me intellectually but I am really terrified of you and I'd really appreciate it if you went away. Like, really far away. Maybe just stopped being entirely.' He's not the one who's supposed to be better than that. He's not the one who's…weak."

"Do you think you're weak?"

"I must be." Judy let out a sound between a laugh and a sob. "I mean look at me. Two years on the force as the first, and so far only bunny cop. I've brought down mammals way tougher than I am. I can't even see Clawhauser without breaking into a cold sweat. I can't go into basements, believe me that was fun when it came time to help Nick with his laundry. The chief won't let me back into work, you won't sign off on that stupid chart that I can go back to duty, and all I want to do is hide. I should be able to handle this. If I was stronger I could handle this."

"Judy strength has nothing to do with it. Extremely traumatic experiences-"

"Change patterns of thought and behavior." Judy cut Manny off. "Yes. I know. We've gone over that. I've been coming here for a month and a half doctor. It's not working. I just don't think I can do this."

"If you could remember what happened I'd be able to help you-"

"Help me what?" Judy stuck her head behind the pillow again. "Help me stop acting terrified? Help me pretend that I'm OK?"

"It's not pretend Judy. You just need to remember."

"All I remember is there was an attack by a feline and he told me to run. We've been over this so many times. You want to know about my nightmares?" Judy's voice roughened as she fought back tears. "I'm running, it's raining. Sometimes I'm inside, sometimes I'm out. I'm being chased. I'm not fast enough. I'm never fast enough. And there's this thing chasing me and laughing and constantly yelling at me to run away for it and I wake up screaming and it's always the same repeated shit show!"

Judy pressed her face into the pillow. She shook, panting for breath, throat sore from the shouting. Her chest hurt. Something inside cracked and she was sobbing into the pillow, curled up as tight as she could be. A soft, delicate hand stroked her ears. The rabbit stayed like that for a few minutes, until her breath started coming more evenly and her cries turned into hiccoughs. She wiped furiously at her face and looked up at the mongoose standing next to the chair.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

"That's entirely your choice Judy." Manny kept stroking her ears. "I can't stop you from walking out and not coming back. But please, just try one more session. Take a few days, calm down as best you can, don't even leave the house if you don't want to. But please come and see me one more time before you quit."

Judy nodded weakly.


	3. Chapter 3

"Ah, Judy. Sorry about rescheduling on such short notice, especially with what's supposed to be our last session. Chief Bogo, and I use his title instead of his first name out of his request, needed to file an emergency session. If you'd wait outside?" The mongoose gestured towards the door gracefully, an apologetic smile on his lips.

"Oh! Oh. Of course Dr. Gujerat." Judy started to slip back into the hallway.

"Sit down Hopps."

Judy froze. She half turned and glanced between Manny and the chief, eyes flicking back and forth in confusion.

"Chief, are you sure? You know these sessions are confidential."

"I said sit Hopps." The buffalo stared at Gujerat as if daring a challenge. "Yeah, I had an emergency come up. But I think you could stand to hear this. So sit down, stay silent, and maybe learn something."

"Chief I don't mind-"

"I said…" Bogo stood up and grabbed the room's spare chair, dragging it next to his with one hand. "Sit."

Gujerat shrugged and gestured towards the chair. Judy slowly shut the door and slunk over, hopping onto it and curling up. She opened her mouth but Bogo waved his hand and cut short anything she had to say.

"Silence Hopps."

"Well then. Since it seems like this is going to be a three way session…" Manny settled back and adjusted his spectacles. "Go ahead Chief."

"Right. You've heard what I have to say about a hundred times already doc."

"Mmm. Yes, yes I have. I expect this has something to do with it?"

"Too right it does." Bogo sighed and clasped his hands in his lap, his brows furrowing. "As you know it's not so much for my safety I'm concerned. It's for my officers. Stress, especially the overwhelming stress this job can sometimes place on them, can make any mammal do otherwise unthinkable things. Combine that with certain vulnerabilities some of them possess and well…it frightens me. Makes me have nightmares. I don't want to have to respond to a scene where they have lost their minds."

"Are you referring to any officer in particular?"

"Yes."

"Which officer concerns you?"

"Hopps."

"And why does officer Hopps concern you?"

"Because in addition to being excellent at her job, completely devoted to her work, and willing to put herself on the line for the greater good she is vulnerable and has suffered an extremely traumatic experience."

"I see." Manny turned towards Judy. "Judy do you have a response to that?"

"Well I-"

"I said keep quiet Hopps." Bogo's voice, for the words, was gentle. "Just stay quiet and listen for a while."

"It hardly seems fair to have her here for this if we don't let her respond chief."

"No, it doesn't. But sometimes being a cop isn't fair."

"Well, are you going to enlighten her or just let her stay curled up in that chair?"

Bogo took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He leaned completely back in the chair, hands gripping the arm rests.

"Like I said, you've heard it a hundred times doc. It never gets any easier to talk about."

"I expect it doesn't."

"This was…oh about 25 years ago now. I had been on the force just over five years. Got a disturbance call, someone heard screaming. I was the closest unit so I responded. Wasn't riding with a partner that day, don't usually get one assigned for traffic duty. Some dinky little abandoned industrial park outside of sahara square. I rolled up, got out of the car. First sound I hear is the screaming of someone in absolute terror and pain. Never a good start to a call. So I grabbed the shotgun out of the squad car and go to investigate.

"Went around a row of shipping containers and…it still chills me to think about it. Four dead wolves, oldest of them just barely able to vote probably, with the fifth one doing the screaming. There's an elephant with his trunk around his head, holding him down with his feet. He's pulling…and the screaming stops because the elephant has just ripped the boy's head off. The blood and the smell…and that was a merciful death judging by what's left of the other four. He must have been getting tired.

"Little back-story here…the elephant? I knew him. Colonel Hathi. He was my instructor at the academy. Mine was the last class he taught. Brilliant, funny, kind old chap, but a hell of drill instructor. 'I've had men caned for less!' and 'If this were the army I'd have you digging a latrine instead of studying the law as it's about all I can see you're good for!' He was hard. Oh he was hard. But he understood. After a war and three peacekeeping operations he understood. He'd seen horror. He'd had men under his command die. He'd witnessed some of the worst the world had to offer and after a long career he'd 'retired' to training law enforcement.

"It's not like he wanted to make us soldiers. He was always very clear on that. Always said, 'Soldiers are good at one thing and that's killing. That's easy enough to drill into anyone. Teaching someone not to kill, to keep the peace? To put themselves between danger and the helpless and hold no matter what the odds? Hell of a lot harder. Hell of a lot more important. Soldiers make terrible peace keepers because their first response is always to shoot. Police officers make terrible soldiers because they won't shoot until it's almost too late. The world needs less of the former and more of the latter.'

"Hathi was my mentor. I stayed in touch with him after the academy. Had lunch with him regularly. Learned quite a bit about command; the perils and the pitfalls. After he fully retired he shrank…not physically but in an indefinable sense, like a part of him had left and he was just waiting to follow it. The vital part. The part that defined him. Oh he still blustered and joked but I knew he was waiting for the end, waiting peacefully. Almost wanting it. He was my friend. A good friend and one I miss terribly.

"He needed a cane to walk towards the end, was almost blind and deaf. To see him, limping to a table in a café where a few months earlier he would have been marching ramrod straight, monocle perched just right, swagger stick held perfectly, it was hard. But it never kept me away. I learned more than just how to be a good commander from him. I learned quite a bit about being a good man. He helped his neighbors as much as he could. He was well liked and respected. And he never talked about the last assignment he was on. Anything else, open for discussion. That though, that was one thing he would never bring up, never discuss, and never elaborate on. He'd acknowledge he was there and that was it.

"Probably seems like I'm rambling a bit but this is important. Need you to understand why what happened had so much impact on me.

"So. There's Hathi, having just murdered, from what I can tell, a fifth victim in front of me. The old boy is bleeding from multiple wounds, one of his eyes is out, and one of his ears is just bloody ribbons. It's gone quiet since the wolf has died. He's breathing very slowly. Standing more erect than I've seen him in years. His cane is broken on the ground but he doesn't even seem to need it. And he turns towards me and I know something has gone horribly wrong in his head. His eye…it's not Hathi. It's full of rage and hate and it comes to me suddenly that I've heard of this, learned about it during history class in high school. He's gone rogue. A bull elephant hasn't gone rogue, not a documented case, in over a hundred years. And yet here's an articulate, kind, wise old commanding officer in front of me seeing the world through a haze of bloodlust surrounded by butchered mammals barely old enough to be men.

"What did I do? I froze. Even in his old age he'd kept himself fit, and 12,000 pounds of fury is not something to inspire confidence. I knew he couldn't see too well, especially missing an eye like that so I just stayed still. My plan was to get to the car, call for all the backup I could, and cover the area with officers. I waited, frozen on the spot, praying my radio didn't go off.

"And then I smelled something else over the blood and death. A hint of perfume, not expensive stuff, but the kind of thing a girl just into womanhood would wear. And blood of a different sort…and a smell which any male mammal knows well. I held my position, watching Hathi, praying for silence. Then she started sobbing. Broken, heaving sobs. They split the air as loud as thunder in the silence. I saw Hathi turn towards an open shipping crate. I knew right then what had happened.

"What was I going to do? Let a bull elephant vent his wrath on a suffering girl child? I racked the shotgun. It was so loud. Hathi froze. His head swung towards me. The rest of him followed, a juggernaut ponderous and terrible in his strength.

"The first shell didn't even slow him. I saw it take him just off center of mass. I started backpedaling, working the action and firing as fast as I could. I put seven shells into my mentor and friend. Seven shells, each one shattering another part of a man I loved and admired. The last one forced him to all fours, terrible wounds gaping in his hide. I kept the gun pointed towards him, scarce daring to breathe. And then he raised his head.

"His eye…the rage had gone out of him. He was in control again. He seemed to shrink in front of me, his regained strength deserting him. Now he wasn't a rogue elephant, a force of nature as implacable and destructive as a typhoon. Now he was just a tired, hurting, bewildered old man. He tried to speak, coughed up blood. He shrank until he was lying on the ground. The girl was still sobbing.

"I still remember his words. 'Bogo? By all the mercies what have I done Bogo…please…'

"I rushed to his side. My hand was already thumbing the radio, babbling for an ambulance, there was a shooting, there was death. Help, send help. Please send help."

"His trunk reached out and touched my wrist. I…I will never stop being ashamed of this. I recoiled. He could see the fear in my eyes. I know he could. 'Please Bogo. Please my boy. Don't let me end like this. Don't let them see me like this. Please…please make an end of it.'

"I told him he was mad, told him help was coming. I would testify about anything I could. I would lie for him. I would make up any story to protect him. He smiled then, trunk moving to the barrel of the shotgun. I could smell his hair singing when he touched it but I think he was beyond pain at that point.

"He spoke to me…'No. No, you won't. Please boy, I'm old and tired and I've done a terrible thing. I'm dying anyway. You're a damned fine shot and I can feel the end coming. Please…' He moved the shotgun barrel to his forehead.

"I was paralyzed. I wasn't about to shoot him. I didn't have to shoot him. He was defenseless and harmless and dying anyways. But he kept looking at me, pain and loss and so sad. 'The last kindness you can do this old man is give him a dignified death.'

Bogo paused to wipe at the tears running down his muzzle.

"I couldn't do it. He died there, shotgun pressed to his head, eye pleading, just as the ambulance showed up. Just let out one final breath and went still. I just sat there, trying to focus. Trying to stay sane. Trying not to accept that I had just murdered a great man who, in his last act, effectively sacrificed himself to protect a child.

"The other officers found a fox, maybe 15 or 16, inside the shipping crate. She'd been abused harshly. Hathi enjoyed going on walks in the mornings before the sun came out and it became too hot for him. Official reports say he'd stumbled upon the gang of wolves running a train on her and tried to stop them. In ensuing fight he'd been injured, lost his senses, gone rouge, and killed them all.

"They wanted to give me a medal. They said if it wasn't for my quick action he very well might have killed the girl. I was cleared of any wrong doing, and nobody dared accuse the dead war hero. They only pitied him that he should end up like that.

"You have to understand things were different back then. The law was more likely to turn a blind eye to a fox girl being molested. Turned out later she had turned 16 three days before, that made her of the age of consent. Those gang members would have gone to court, say she offered herself up to them, and would have gotten off without so much as a finger wagged at them.

"I said earlier Hathi never talked about one thing. Almost never is the correct term. He spoke of it with me once, while he was very drunk one evening. We were both drunk. I think he didn't even realize what he was saying, and if he did I would never remember it. I think he just needed to get it off his chest.

"He told me during his final tour how he'd seen situations like the one that came up later. How soldiers would grab girls and women and abuse them. How the bureaucrats prevented him and his men from acting. How since it was an 'internal affair' they had to just turn their backs and not interfere. How mothers would come up to them pleading for help for their daughters only to be pushed away. How it rankled him to do nothing. How it ate at him.

"That was the reason he chose to train police officers once his career ended. He wanted to make sure the next generation of law enforcement was brought up to never turn away a weeping mother or sister or aunt and would do what was right. The horrors of what he saw caused him to instill in us an honor and dedication to the law that very few officers I have seen since match.

"That was why he went rogue. He wasn't going to let it happen again. And I look at Hopps and I think to myself 'For one so young she's had her crucible and is it going to break her? Is it going to make her go rogue and snap when she comes across another situation like what she just faced? Is she going to able to work through it or am I one day going to have to handle a call where she lost her mind and did what, while it may have been needed, was not right and violates everything she stands for?'

"I have nightmares about it doc. I have nightmares about all my officers that suffer an event like that. I almost did. After Hathi died I was…angry. So angry all the time at everything. The system that was so screwed up he lost his mind thinking about it. The other officers who didn't have to be there, who weren't forced to shoot their friend. Politicians, commanding officers, even television commercials that pretended if we bought some stupid brand of toothpaste or a shiny new gadget that the world would be some happy little place where everybody smiled and nobody got hurt.

"But most of all I was angry at criminals. At mammals so selfish or stupid or lazy or just plain wrong in the head they couldn't or wouldn't function within a normal society. The gang situation was pretty bad in the city at the time and that was kind of the final straw once the official story got out. There was a massive law enforcement response, both locally and by the feds. And every chance I got I made sure I was on the front lines to bring the scum to justice.

"It almost cost me my career. I let the anger build up inside of me, fed off it, liked it. I started becoming rougher, more willing to escalate, to get an excuse to use force. The breaking point was when two other officers had pulled me off some punk who'd thought he was going to be hard by waving a knife at the cops. I almost…well doc you met me right after that. It's a good thing Chief Feral understood the pressure we were all under and that the situation at the time caused most people to turn a blind eye towards what would certainly be called police brutality.

"That's what worries me so much about officer Hopps. Not that she's going to go off half cocked with rage, because while I've seen her angry enough to kick a rhino on the nose, which she has done, but that she's going to let fear take over. Every time she's involved with a species that's bigger and stronger than her, every time the situation seems to be heading towards force, is she going to let her fear control her? She won't be drawing a weapon out of hate like I was. She'll be drawing it out of terror. An officer who's constantly terrified is in a way more dangerous than one with a massive chip on their shoulder. At least the latter has a relatively predictable pattern of behavior.

"That's why we're having this little chat. That's why", the water buffalo turned and looked straight at Judy, "I wanted you to be here for this. You're not alone. This isn't a form of punishment. Doctor Gujerat helped me work through the darkest part of my life. Hopps, please. Work with him. Don't get up and walk out the door. It'll eat you alive if you do. The world needs cops like you, the world needs good people like you, and if you allow this to win you'll end up doing something terrible. I don't want to see that Hopps. You're better than that."

Chief Bogo rose and walked over to the door. He glanced back at the mongoose.

"Thank you for your time Manny."

"My pleasure chief."

Judy kept her eyes on the floor until the door closed.

"So Judy. Did you want me to get the outpatient forms? Fill those out and you can leave without any repercussions. You won't be a police officer anymore, but you won't be in any trouble."

"No." With a sniff the rabbit lifted her head. "I want to talk."


	4. Chapter 4

"Hello Judy." The mongoose smiled and gestured towards the armchair. The chart had long since wound up on a shelf. It could be dealt with another time.

"Hello Manny." Judy settled herself in. The pillow still became the attention of a hug but her legs hung down. She'd started to become more comfortable. It was a safe space.

"So you're back at your own place now? It must have been difficult, living with Nick for the past few months to help him finish recovering."

"Not really. And we've decided to move in together. It just makes more sense. He helps me calm down. I get to use his tail as a stuffed animal. It's an even trade."

"And the nightmares?"

"Still there. Still waking up the neighbors most nights. They've at least stopped calling the police. It's a little hard on Nick now that he's back on duty. He's figured that if he's holding me when I go to sleep I do better. Although sometimes he doesn't manage to get his tail away from me. I've woken up a few times to find him cramped up on the edge of the bed sleeping on the covers."

"And that's not causing any stress in your relationship?"

"It is. He tries not to let me see but it is. He worries about me. And I know he wants more and I want to give it to him but until I can start getting over this I won't be ready."

"Well I am glad you kept coming back. Shall we begin?"

"All right. It's raining…"

* * *

Rain pounded against the roof of the patrol car. The wipers whirred softly, a losing battle against the constantly renewed sheet. Judy stared out into the haze of the storm, thinking longingly of a warm bath and a good book once the shift was over. The radio's ceaseless babble had become so much empty noise, punctuated by pops of static and the distant rumble of thunder. Nick sat behind the wheel, leaning forward slightly, eyes constantly in motion to pick out anything or anyone that might appear suddenly in their path. The buzzing of the emergency broadcast snapped the young officer out of her daze.

"The national weather service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the city of Zootopia and outlying areas. Flash flood conditions may exist in low lying areas. Residents are advised to seek shelter and higher ground. The storm has been tracked moving northwest at 5-7 miles an hour. Rainfall is expected to exceed two inches an hour. The storm is expected to-"

The monotone computerized voice shut off as Nick powered down the radio.

"The storm's already here. All they've been talking about for days now." Nick sighed and rolled his shoulders. "Carrots remind me again how we managed to pull patrol duty today?"

Judy glanced over at her partner, the ghost of a smile crossing her lips.

"I think it has something to do with you leaking that video of the chief dancing to Gazelle in his office last week." The rabbit suppressed a giggle at the thought of the tough old officer gyrating to the latest hit from the pop artist. "Not that it wasn't hilarious, but I think he might have been a little upset about that."

"Oh yeah. Well, what can I say, it's not every day a guy gets to record a grumpy buffalo who happens to be his boss trying to imitate the moves of a trained dancer. It was his fault for leaving the blinds up anyway."

The wipers shifted to a new tone as the rain increased, clacking defiance against the implacable enemy.

"The blinds on his office were down Nick." Judy shook her head.

"Well it was his fault for not noticing that someone snuck a camera in there then." The fox shrugged eloquently. "Besides, think of the million plus mammals whose days were made better by the chief enjoying himself for a change. Police work at its finest; improve the lives of citizens without ever leaving the station."

Judy snorted and shifted in her seat. She'd long grown accustomed to the wet fur smell permeating the car. It was going to take a week to dry out her gear, longer if they had to go back out into the storm instead of heading straight back to the station. She glanced at the clock.

"Well, on the plus side, we've only got an hour left until we can head back. Everyone's probably hunkered down by now and after this morning Little Rodentia has been evacuated." That had been fun, right up until the cranky hedgehog who'd flat out refused to leave his condo. "Remember that one guy Nick? The hedgehog?"

"How can I forget?" Wilde shuddered. "It's a good thing I was wearing gloves."

He put on a gravelly, nasal voice.

" 'Oo th' bloody 'ell 'oo fink 'oo are? Oive seen worse den dis! Bah, 'oo dumb coppers, oi was in th' storm of '76! Now dat were summat roight. Floated 'arf oh downtown it did. Dis'll be a drizzle o piss compared ta dat. No, oi'm not movin. Not. One. Bloody. Inch!' "

Judy didn't manage to suppress the giggle this time.

"And then you picked him up!"

Nick chuckled and flexed his right hand. Even with the duty gloves he'd felt the tips of the spines threatening his palm.

"I have been cussed out by some professionals but that guy…" Nick shook his head again. "He was an artist, a true master of the craft. I only understood maybe one word in five once he really got going but if profanity were a sport he'd be the all time champion."

"Yeah. He was still going when they shut the door on the van."

The pair lapsed into companionable silence again. The grey haze closed in on the car. Judy leaned against the door frame and resumed watching the storm. The distant rumbles of thunder were coming closer and more frequently, lightning dancing amongst the towering clouds.

"Hey Carrots?"

"Yeah Nick?"

"What are you up to after shift?"

"I was going to go home, take a bath, read, and put some earplugs in. We almost never had storms like this at home. For obvious reasons bunnies don't much care for thunder and lightning."

"Ah. Sounds like…well I hesitate to use the word fun but it's something."

"Why?" Judy looked at her partner.

"Nothing. It's nothing." The fox was completely focused on the road but his ears drooped slightly.

"Come on, say it."

"I was kind of hoping you'd want to-"

The crackle of the dispatch radio interrupted him.

"37 do y-", the radio cut out as a bolt of lightning slammed home a few blocks away. Judy flinched and covered her ears as the thunder rolled over them. Nick picked up the mike and thumbed it on.

"Negative dispatch, say again, over."

Clawhauser's voice came back, fuzzy with distortion. Judy took her hands away from her ears and shook her head, glad the strike hadn't been closer. Nothing like having ringing ears.

"37 do you copy? Over."

"I do now. What's going dispatch? Over."

"We've got a domestic checkup request near your location, apparently there's an elderly puma that lives by himself. Neighbors haven't seen him come out in a few days and with the storm they wanted someone to make sure he's OK, over."

"Copy that, send the address, over." Nick rolled his eyes, obviously delighted to be going back out into the rapidly worsening storm.

"On its way. Name's a Mr. Tocho, mid seventies, widower. No listed relatives in or around the city. One son: no listed address or phone number, at least not in our system. Over."

Judy watched the address pop up on the GPS. The unit gave a beep as it lost signal in time with another bolt of lightning. She winced and covered her ears again. That one had been closer.

"-that Dispatch, 37 en route. Over and out."

Nick waited for the GPS to bring up directions, his claws clicking against the steering wheel as it reacquired the satellites.

"What were you going to say Nick?"

"Hrm?" The fox glanced at Judy and shrugged. "Nothing. Weather's too bad anyway. Let's get this over with and we can go home."

The patrol car rolled on as the storm swallowed the world around it.

"Mr. Tocho?" Judy pounded against the door again, shouting to be heard over the clattering hail. "Mr. Tocho I'm Officer Hopps with the ZPD. We've had a call from your neighbors, they're concerned about you."

"—ts"

Judy glanced at Nick, covering one ear and cupping the other.

"What?!"

The fox leaned in close.

"I said I don't think there's anyone here Carrots!"

"Why are you whispering?"

"-m n- sp-"

Judy could see his lips move but the words just weren't quite coming through.

"WHAT?" She leaned in closer.

"I said I'm not whispering! We're both shouting at the top of our voices!"

"We are?!"

Nick shook his head and knelt down. He pressed his hands over one of his partner's ears and practically stuck his muzzle in the other.

"You're really having a hard time with this aren't you? That last bolt must have been really close."

"Everything is ringing but I can hear just fine!"

"Dammit!" Nick jerked his head back from the enthusiastic shouting. He gestured towards the patrol car, mimed the pair of them walking back to it, and threw up the hood on his rain jacket. He was almost off the porch before Judy's frantic waving drew him back. "-?"

"It's open!" Judy pushed the front door inward, hand on the unlocked knob. A hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"Judy, we can't!"

"Nick!" She leaned away from her partner and rubbed at her ear. "I can hear you fine, I already said so."

"Huh. A few seconds ago I was practically screaming at you and you barely could."

"Bunnies get over loud noises pretty quick. Kind of have to with hearing as good as ours. Still hurts, but our ears don't ring for that long." Judy tried to take a step inside, the pressure on her shoulder increasing and holding her in place.

"Hey, that's great to know. By the way what do you think you're doing? We don't have a warrant. We can't just-", Nick stopped and sniffed the air. "Uhhh…we might have probable cause though."

"Why?"

The hand lifted from her shoulder as the fox stuck his head in the door, snuffling. He gagged and pulled back quickly.

"Phew…well, it's hard to get at over the rotting milk and spilled booze but…" He stuck his head in and sniffed again, a little more delicately. "Yeah. Yeah that's definitely blood."

"Well? What are we waiting for." Judy slipped past Nick and stepped into the gloom.

* * *

The radio crackled with static. Nick shrugged helplessly as he flipped through the last of the available channels. The thunder at least was muted in the hallway of the house. Every few seconds the world was sharply etched into focus by the constant lightning. The power was out, another victim of nature. The wind roared softly behind them through the open front door, a firm draft flowing from the depths of the house to the outside.

"Looks like the storm took out a relay tower, or is scrambling the signal, or for all we know hit headquarters and knocked out the comm center." He took a slow breath, flashlight playing along the furniture and faded pictures. "We're not going to be getting backup any time soon."

"But you're sure the trail leads this way?"

"I told you Carrots, it's not a trail. A trail starts somewhere definite and ends up somewhere. This…" His eyes flickered uneasily around the hall. "This is just on the air. And yeah, it's stronger this way."

The pair eased down the hall, Nick sniffing every few steps. The living room and kitchen hadn't revealed anything other than a glass of spoiled milk on the table and a half eaten meal with a comment from the fox about a desire for a gas mask. A spilled bottle of whiskey at the entrance of the hall had him hesitating for a minute, carefully stepping over the splotch in the carpet to avoid stirring up the alcohol smell any more. And now they were looking at a closed door. Nick's nose wrinkled and his ears laid back.

"Yeah. Definitely coming from there."

"Well? What are we waiting for?" Judy put her hand on the knob.

"Carrots…Judy." Nick's voice was quiet, with a hint of stress to it. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

"So do I, but for all we know there's an old man lying hurt in there."

"Yeah, it's…well it's not just that." He gestured around the house. "Like I know there's blood, and the smell of puma everywhere, and with the other stuff it's not definite but it just smells off. Like there's something wrong with the way the old guy smelled."

"How do you mean? Like he was rabid or something?"

"No, I know that smell, it's not that. You never forget that. If I'd smelled that I'd have dragged you back outside, locked us in the car and figured out how to call in all the firepower we have." Rabies were no joke. CDC response teams had been known to quarantine entire neighborhoods and burn blocks to the ground if they detected and outbreak. "No it's like…ah I can't put my finger on it. Just...be careful."

Judy nodded and opened the door. It swung inward, revealing a flight of steps leading down into the darkness. The pair looked at each other and aimed their lights in. Just stairs, leading down a story, with a paneled wood floor at the bottom. A flash of lightning lit a sunken window, reflecting off piles of neatly stacked radio equipment on a long workbench.

"Oooh Nick, a spooky basement full of spooky ham radio gear." Judy started down after a playful punch at her partner's arm. "Mr. Tocho? I'm officer Hopps with the ZPD. Are you down here? Do you need help?"

Nick followed after she'd gone down a few steps, biting back on a sarcastic remark. He rubbed the back of his neck in an attempt to smooth out his hackles.

"Mr. Tocho?" Man he hated dark basements. Too much like the junior scout meeting. "You see anything Judy?"

"Not yet Nick." The rabbit swept her light around the room slowly. Electronics of varying design sat quietly on shelves or on the bench in states of reassembly and repair. A long shelf ran a couple of feet below the ceiling, packed with what were unmistakably radios and broadcast equipment of a long gone era. She felt Nick reach the bottom behind her, the wood giving a soft squeak when he put his weight on it. "Mr. Tocho?"

"Hopps." Nick's voice was sharp. "Over here."

Judy turned, pointing her light towards her partner. He was standing next to a crumpled tawny form, a pool of congealed blood around a head no longer quite the right shape. A smashed, antique, and clearly very heavy radio lay next to the corpse, bits of electrical scrap scattered in a fan away from the scene. A toppled step ladder completed the scene.

"Looks like he tried to get that thing down, slipped, and it fell on his head when he hit the floor." Nick rummaged in his belt and pulled out his phone. He started photographing the scene, walking around the body with care to avoid stepping in the blood.

"Oh Nick…are you sure he's?" Judy knelt down at the edge of the pool and reached a hand towards the ruin of the old puma.

"Well judging from the blood at the ears…and…" The fox knelt down and shone his light on Tocho's face. "Mouth and nose, I'd say it cracked his skull. He probably lost consciousness immediately. After that it was probably just brain bleeding that killed him."

"What a shame. To be old and alone and not have anyone to look after you." Judy carefully touched the old puma's face and closed his staring eyes. She stayed like that for a moment, head bowed, before rising. "Well…I guess we'd better call it in then. Or head out to the car and write a report and wait until the storm clears. They'll have the coroner down here as soon as they can."

"Yeah." Nick rose as well, a hand going to the back of his neck again. He shivered. "Now I'm not one to believe in ghosts or anything but I wouldn't mind getting out of this place. It gives me the willies."

"You? The willies? Nick I thought you were above that kind of thing." Judy started up the stairs. "Come on, let's see if the radios are working yet."

"With our luck? We'll have to walk back to the station in this to let anyone know. Besides-" He yelped and jumped as a gust of wind rattled the house, the door at the top of the steps slamming shut at the sudden vacuum. He heard a soft thump as Judy came back down the stairs in a single leap.

"Heh…looks like leaving the front door open was a bad idea. With a capital Bad." Judy panted, a hand to her chest. "Whoo that startled the hell out of me."

She nudged her partner and stepped to the side.

"You take the lead on this one. I know how much you want to get out of here."

"Yeah, sure." Nick started up the steps, constantly trying to smooth down his hackles, ears laying back of their own accord.

"Aww is the poor fox all scared?" Judy squeezed past her partner and bounded up the last few steps.

"Judy, shut up."

"What?" Hopps froze, hand reaching out for the door. "What did you say to me?"

"Please, just be quiet. Please."

Nick crept up the stairs, sniffing carefully, not even worried about his rising threat reaction. One hand crept to his sidearm and quietly popped the button on the retaining strap.

"Nick?" Judy whispered. She leaned towards the door, ears out stretched.

"Keep a light on me." The fox whispered.

His hand touched the knob and slowly turned it. The door resisted for a moment-and pulled open without an issue. Both officers stared out into the empty hallway.

"Wow Nick. I have never seen you this freaked out." Judy slipped under his arm and took a half step into the hall. "Now let's-"

Something heavy whistled past her nose as her partner yanked her back by her duty belt. Splinters peppered her cheek. She could feel Nick struggling to haul her behind him and bring his gun out at the same time. He took a step backwards, stumbled…

A horrible, hollow sensation grew in Judy's stomach as she felt herself falling. She released the light and scrabbled at the walls, the world slowing to a crawl. Something dark was filling the doorway, the madly dancing flashlight on its trip to the bottom of the stairs reflecting off a pair of gleaming eyes. The ground was very hard.

* * *

Judy groaned. Her side hurt, breath hitching in her throat. She coughed and grimaced. No stabbing pain, that probably just meant bruised ribs. Felt like the wind got knocked out of her. She experimentally moved her limbs. Nothing else broken, but she was going to be sore tomorrow. With a soft moan she pushed herself to her feet, eyes straining against the darkness.

"Nick?" The words were a whisper. She shook her head in an attempt to clear some of the cobwebs. "You OK?"

A deep chuckle behind her was not the answer she was expecting. She leapt forward, scrambling for her weapon. Something grabbed her leg as she jumped and the rabbit found herself dangling upside down. A heavy hand clamped down on her wrist and forced her arm to her side.

"And what do we have here?" The voice was a half purr, half snarl. "A little rabbit down in a lion's den? How adorable." Hot breath washed over her face. A pair of shining feline eyes came into focus a few inches from her nose. She struggled weakly in the grip, kicking at the arm holding her off the ground. "Aww the bitty bunny thinks she can get away."

"I'm a cop you lunatic! Let me go!"

"Oh a cop? I had no idea. So sorry. Thought you were just some sneak thief come to rob my old man. Of course I'll let you go."

The world blurred for a second as her attacker whirled her around and released her. Judy slammed into the wall and bit back on a scream, struggling for breath again. There was movement and then a horrible weight was pinning her to the floor. One large hand closed around her throat. The other fumbled at her duty belt. She kicked up with all the strength she could find, an overwhelming terror flooding her mind. Oh god she was going to be...this…thing was going to, right here, and she wouldn't be able to-there was a sudden lightness at her belt and the clatter of metal across the floor.

"Couldn't have you getting that nasty little toy out could we? That would spoil all the fun." The face came back in, lit by Judy's dropped flashlight at the bottom of the stairs. A puma, teeth bared in a manic smile, stared down at her out of eyes empty of anything resembling sanity. "Now I'm sure you have all sorts of questions. And normally well I'd answer them, but I was hoping for a little more time to put some affairs in order before I left the city. Course taking care of Dad was top of the priority list but as you can see I've already managed that."

All she could manage in response was a weak whimper as the hand tightened its grip on her throat.

"Oh yes, that was me. After all those years he kept me locked up in that damned hospital. Finally figured out how to trick the doctors and him into bringing me home. Waited until he'd come down to screw around with his toys, made sure to give the ladder a little kick…I suppose I could just kill you now-I'm going to anyway. But you know how cats love to play with their food." The muzzle leaned in, fetid breath filling Judy's nose. "And yes, yes I intend to play with you quite thoroughly."

A rough, stinking tongue licked her cheek. Judy shut her eyes and tried to jerk her head away. Her legs kicked at the broad chest above her, but without much room for travel she might have been batting playfully at the big cat. He chuckled again and pulled his head back, loosening the grip on her neck a little. She gasped and took in a deep, hacking breath.

"Don't worry about your partner by the way. The fall put him out of it. Looks like he did everything he could to put himself between you and the floor. How very noble." The head swung away from the light. "Have to wonder if he's been getting between your bunny buns if you know what I mean."

"Please…just let me go…it'll be easier if you just-"

"Easier?" The face swung back to Judy. "Who says so? I'll be out of the city before the storm clears. They'll never be able to track me. I'll disappear into the wilderness. I've seen your civilized comforts. I don't need em. And when I get hungry, or bored, I'll find myself some little doe or vixen out in the woods on a trip and take care of two things at once."

Judy's eyes flickered towards the flashlight. Her hand crept along the floor. If she could just get it in his eyes…

"Ha, nice try bunny." The puma calmly picked up the light and clicked it off. Now there was only darkness, punctuated by the flashes of the storm. "Here's how this is going to work. I've already made sure your partner isn't going to get in the way. It's awful hard to do anything with your guts hanging out."

Judy's breath caught and she froze.

"Oh yes, yes I did. Cool as a cucumber. Realized he'd caught my scent, he was down for a moment, and I figured why not? So one swipe with the claws to open him up and a quick bounce of the head off the floor to keep him down…"

"You…monster…"

"No, monsters are things that are made up to scare people. I'm very, very real." Judy felt the puma lean back in. "As I was saying…you're going to run. You're going to try and escape. I'm going to catch you."

"And if I don't run?"

"We could start right now if you like…"

Judy started kicking again as she felt the cougar start fumbling with her duty belt. He chuckled and threw it aside after a moment.

"Course if it was going to be like that you wouldn't be putting up a fight either." The crushing grip tightened on her throat again and then she was sliding along the floor. She fetched up against the work bench. "Who knows? You might be able to get past me and out of the house. Now…"

The floor squeaked softly as the puma padded across it. The basement was awash with light for a second and Judy saw her assailant fully. He was at least a head taller than most mountain lions she'd seen. Muscles bulged against clothing that might once have fit him, years ago, but now strained to cover a body hardened by exercise and madness. The light faded as thunder rumbled outside. Judy pulled herself to her feet and struggled to get her breath back. She had tried not to look at Nick. Was he breathing? She was sure she saw his chest moving. The stairs were about thirty feet away from her in a straight line. She just had to make it. The squeaking stopped.

"Run little bunny."

With a final intake of breath she was sprinting as hard as she could. Her footfalls pounded in her ears, breath coming in ragged gasps. Another burst of light showed her she only needed to leap…

And she was whirling around to go skidding across the floor again. She screamed as something hard slammed into her back. Whimpering she pulled herself away from the edge of the tool box she'd come up against.

"Aww what's the matter bunny? I thought you were supposed to be fast…"

Judy strained at the soft squeaks of the wood, the only betrayal of the puma's position. She forced her breathing to slow down as she swiveled her head. There was a soft rush of air next to her, an impact and as she jerked to the side thin traces of fire ran up her side. Cool air rushed in through the tears in her uniform. There was another soft thump on the far side of the basement and that maddened chuckle.

"You don't think it's going to be that easy do you? Oh by the way, I can see you just fine. I like the way your nose twitches."

Judy swallowed and crept away from the voice. Another flash of lightning. That's all she needed and…there. The stairs. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a lashing tail and the big cat crouched, just waiting for her move.

She took two steps and juked sideways, planting her feet against the wall. She felt something large pass underneath her as she changed direction. As soon as her feet touched the floor she was bounding towards where the stairs should be. She leapt, felt her right foot touch carpet. Her other leg came down…

And she was hurled into empty space. She screamed again as she slammed into a rack of electronics, components falling off the shelf and shattering around her. Limping, she made a dash for the workbench. She dove under it and wiggled behind a shop vacuum and mop bucket.

"Almost got away there. Clever bunny. Well, you were anyway."

The floor squeaked.

"I know you're under there. Ask yourself if you want me to come in after you, with nowhere to go."

"Just leave me alone! Go away!" Judy's throat felt like it was tearing as she screamed into the darkness. "JUST GO AWAY!"

The soft chuckle came again.

"Nope."

The shop vac flew out from under the workbench. A thick arm followed it, hand wrapping around one of her legs. She scrabbled against the floor, kicking at empty air with her free foot. Heavy weight bore down on her, another hand stopping her frantic kicks. Something hard and hot and reeking of musk rubbed against her thighs. She started screaming again, no words, just a terrified wailing. A set of jaws came down on either side of her neck, closed ever so gently. She froze, screams dying in her throat. She felt tears running down her face as the rough tongue licked the underside of her chin. The teeth withdrew.

"Mmm almost there. I like the way you run. Makes me REAL happy if you get my meaning, and I'm sure you do. One more time for me bunny. Run for me one more time."

The weight withdrew, the floor squeaked and Judy lay there. She panted softly, feeling herself curling into a ball, ears around her back.

"Oh dear, did I break my toy? That's fine…looks like I'll just have to start on the fox. Need a bit of a snack."

Judy's breath caught. She forced herself to uncurl, to rise. She heard the chuckling from the other side of the basement. Wait for the light. Wait for the-

The strike must have been close. Her fur stood on end all over and the world shook and rang with the shattering crack of the bolt. The light was behind her. She could vaguely hear shouted curses. The stairs were over that way but in the corner, next to the dead man, was her gun. She crouched. She ran.

The floor squeaked behind her. Without breaking stride she leapt vertically. When she felt air under her feet she kicked down and was rewarded with a soft grunt and another boost of lift. She landed on an empty spot on the shelf around the top of the room. She kept running, throwing radios, transmitters, oscilloscopes, anything heavy and large down towards the floor. A set of claws swiped the air right behind her and she kicked a steel cased power supply back towards it. She was rewarded with another shout at the edge of hearing. Almost there…she reached the end of the shelf and jumped into empty space.

She angled herself off the wall, hit the ground in a roll and scrambled in the corner. Hot breath washed over her and she kicked out as hard as she could. The cougar must have still been partially flash blind because she felt her feet connect with his nose, felt something crackle under them. The thing behind her roared in pain. She was almost-her hand touched the patterned grip. She spun just as the lightning flashed again. He was so big…

Her hands trembled as she squeezed. She could barely hear herself screaming again over the gunfire. She kept firing, the muzzle flash showing him coming closer…then staggering…then falling forward. Still she kept firing. His head landed next to her foot and she jammed the gun against it, not even trying for proper form but jerking the trigger as hard and fast as she could now. After an eternity the slide locked back.

Judy curled into a ball, empty gun clutched tightly to her chest, and sobbed.

* * *

"You son of a bitch!" Judy's breath hitched in her chest. She had curled around the pillow, squeezing it so tightly she was having trouble breathing. "Why? Why did you make me remember that you son of a bitch?"

The mongoose smiled sadly. He stretched out a hand and gently stroked her ears.

"Because you had to get it out in the open. Because now you can begin to heal."


	5. Chapter 5

Rain pattered softly against the umbrella. Judy stared at the long flight of narrow steps leading down to the speak easy. A single lamp provided fitful illumination against the gloom of the night, struggling to advertise the presence of a bar Nick had assured her would be packed. There was no flashing neon; no advertisement of any kind to indicate the presence of what she had been told was one of Zootopia's hottest nightlife spots on nights like this. A faded sign with an arrow pointing down was the only nod to a place of business. She felt herself hesitate, felt the fear start to spread icy tendrils through her veins. A soft hand on her arm stopped it in its tracks.

"You ready? I wanted to take you sooner but something special happens on rainy nights."

Judy looked up at her partner, friend, and…she felt a blush rising to her cheeks. The fox stood calmly, waiting for her to make the first move. She nodded slightly and set one foot down on the first step. Then another. Then one more. It was darker down off the street. The darkness was oppressive. The lamp seemed to dim in front of her. She wanted to run. She wanted to hide. The warm, gentle pressure on her arm was the only thing that kept her going.

Her feet touched rain slicked concrete. The door was right in front of her.

"Nick?"

"Yeah Carrots?"

"Are…are you sure? This isn't some joke right? Because…"

"Not joking. Not about this. Not with you."

She turned her face to his, looking for the hint of a smirk. All she saw was a pair of green eyes looking down at her. Serious, quiet green eyes.

"Before we go in I want you to know how proud I am you came this far. We can leave any time you want. I just need you to know that."

"I'm…well I'm not fine. But I think I need this." Judy squared her shoulders and took a slow breath. "OK. Let's go."

Nick reached out and opened the door on a riot of light and noise. The babble of voices filled a room paneled in rich wood, a gleaming bar staffed by mammals in formal wear from most of a century ago. Tables lay scattered about the room as servers glided about. The faint strains of a jazz group warming up floated over the noise, warm and mellow. The pressure slipped off her arm and into her hand.

"Come on."

Nick led her into the bar, waving to staff and various people. She barely had time to register faces as they made their way towards an empty table in front of the stage with a reservation card on it.

A shiver went up her spine and she froze. Felines. The entire band was felines. The pianist was a tiger, drummer a leopard, saxophonist a lion, string players a pair of nearly identical looking cheetahs…and the singer, sitting calmly on a stool and sipping from a glass of water as the band warmed up, was a mountain lion. All of them were immaculately dressed in costume straight out of the roaring twenties. And every one of them had a mask on, an affair that left the mouth free but covered everything from the nose up. Judy stared at the group in horror. She felt Nick stop beside her.

"You ok Carrots?" The pressure on her hand increased. "We can leave, and you can be mad at me for springing this on you, and I can be a dumb fox and I'll find some way to make it up to you."

The singer's masked gaze fell on her. A pair of slitted eyes stared her right in the face. Judy saw a smile twitch across the lips. She felt her nose starting to twitch. It was too much. It was…and then there was a warm voice, rich and melodic, without any malice or anger to it.

"Ladies and gentlemen", the voice purred, a husky dark sound that sent an entirely different shiver up Judy's back, "Our VIPs have arrived. Please join me in welcoming Officers Hopps and Wilde from the ZPD."

Polite applause filled the room as mammals strained to catch a glimpse of the two. Judy felt her heart racing, but it wasn't entirely from fear now. A soft heat filled her cheeks as she looked up at Nick. He shrugged and gestured to the table.

"Eartha owed me a favor. And no, that's not her real name, just her stage name. We can still leave if you want."

Judy looked back up to the singer. The puma winked and adjusted her dress. She waved to the band and the strains of a classic song started up.

"This one's a special request, and dedicated to our city's finest, Judy Hopps, by a certain dumb fox."

 _Unforgettable, that's what you are_ …

 _Unforgettable, though near or far…_

Judy let Nick lead her to the table as the fear drained away, replaced by a warm glow. She sat down, eyes fixed on her partner, hands clasped across the table.

"This all right Carrots?"

Judy nodded as the feline band behind her got into the swing of things.

* * *

Judy pressed her face to Nick's chest as the pair swayed to the slow beat of the band. A thought that had been niggling at her all night came to the surface.

"Nick?"

"Mmhm?"

"Why are all the band members wearing masks?"

"So nobody knows who they are?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Because they only do it for fun. They don't want people approaching them outside of here. And I think they might actually all be real musicians slumming it. Pretty sure Eartha is, but she'll never come out and tell you."

"Oh. And what's so special about tonight? Manny cleared me for service two weeks ago. We could have come any time."

"Because they only play when it rains. Nobody knows why. They just do."

"Oh." Judy closed her eyes and let the music was over her, the soft purrs and rolls in Eartha's voice sending frissions of enjoyment through her. The fear was still there, still present in the back of her mind and in the bottom of her stomach, a fluttering sensation that threatened to jump into her throat every time she caught a glimpse of a swishing tail or glanced at the stage. But it stayed there. In Nick's arms, with the gentle music, she was in a basement full of felines. And she was safe.

 _C'est si bon,  
De partir n'importe ou,  
Bras dessus bras dessous,  
En chantant des chansons,  
C'est si bon…_

The pair danced on into the night as the Wet Cats played on.


End file.
